Pregnant Woman Calls Cops, Ends Up Being Fatally Shot

posted by John Johnson -
4 months ago

A fatal police shooting in Seattle is making headlines over the unusual circumstances: A woman who called 911 Sunday morning to report a burglary ended up being fatally shot by the responding officers, reports the Seattle Times.

The woman has been identified as 30-year-old Charleena Lyles. Police say she brandished a knife at the two responding officers, and while family members don't dispute that, they say she was a petite woman with mental health issues.

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They also say race was a factor: Lyles was black and the officers were white. Three of her children, ages 1, 4, and 11, were home at the time, and relatives say Lyles was several months pregnant with her fifth child. One of her children has Down syndrome. When the call came in about 10am, Seattle police sent two officers to respond, instead of the usual single officer, because of a previous run-in with Lyles.